Harlequins No.8 Nick Easter has his eyes firmly set on the England captaincy.

With Lewis Moody retiring from Test rugby following the World Cup and with Mike Tindall's England future still uncertain, Easter has put his name forward to take the captain's armband for their Six Nations opener against Scotland. England endured a torrid World Cup campaign and Easter's name was thrust into the headlines when he admitted that it could have been him who made the infamous "there's £35k just gone down the toilet" remark following their quarter-final loss to France.

But with Quins riding high in the Premiership and with England in new hands, Easter claims he can still cut it on the international scene and believes Stuart Lancaster will blend youth with experience when naming his squad for the Six Nations.

'I'm sure coach Stuart Lancaster will add youth to England's Six Nations squad," Easter told the Daily Mail. "But he will still need to rely heavily on senior players - and I still have massive ambitions with England.

"I'm fitter and faster than I've ever been since first playing Premiership rugby at 25. The England captaincy would be a great honour. But if I got the job, I would see it as an interim appointment with England wanting to appoint someone long term at a later date."